Hey there, tech fiends. It's that time of the week again. Before we dive into today's focus, here's the usual weekly reminder that if you're looking for even more sick bands to hear, all prior editions of this series can be perused here.
If you're here to hear what's new and badass, you're in luck, since I've got another early album stream for you all today from Pune, India-based trio Dead Exaltation. As usual, you can read on to learn more about the group and the release, or you can scroll below and start jamming the release now. The group's fantastic debut album, Despondent officially drops this Friday, February 5th.
When it comes to highly regarded groups that have rarely been well emulated in spite of their revered status in tech-death circles, both Cryptopsy and Spawn of Possession rank at the very top for me. We could spend a bunch of time diving into the ways they have influenced Wormed and Archspire and more respectively, but the point I'm trying to make is what I have here for you today from Dead Exaltation combines the best of both acts into something new. Dead Exaltation also cites influences beyond those two, listing Gorod, Cattle Decapitation, and Cynic as well. Although the Gorod influence is there and noticeable, by and large, Despondendent is a fucked up enjoyable fusion of None So Vile-style disturbing brutality merged with modern complex Spawn of Possession type wizardry. Prior to this week's release of Despondent, the group had only dropped a single called "Fallacy" in 2015, making the mature and unique sound and style present from start to finish all the more impressive to me as it's their first material really.
As usual, I asked the band if I could get some additional information about the release. Dead Exaltation was kind enough to share with me that, "Writing, recording, mixing, video production, promoting and now releasing in a few days, ‘Despondent’ has been a roller coaster ride for us. The album has been in the works for the past 6 years and it is an amalgamation of every influence and belief we have had over these years. The past year was a very tough one to process with Mradul passing away, and, we both were in a lost state for quite some time. But nevertheless, we were very adamant in releasing this record as it is something which defined our approach towards music and songwriting. Each and every one of us really pushed the limits and expanded our skillset with this record. An emotional yet a learning experience, this album has been an inspiration for us to continue making more music in some form or the other. "
To be sure, there are some moments and passages that don't quite feel up to par with the best the release has to offer, something that often happens on many group's debut album offering. But at the end of the day, Dead Exaltation – Despondent is quite a unique record with a lot of really incredible music to absorb over a ton of listens. So be sure to check out our early stream of Despondent below. Pre-orders can be placed on Bandcamp if you like what you're hearing. You can also follow the group over on the Dead Exaltation Facebook Page.
